Office of Community Partnerships

Adult Education and Business Programs

Adult Education/Literacy

Program Summary Teaching/ Learning Research Service Contacts Dept. Affiliation
Boston Public Library Consortium's Strategic Priority Committee Janet Stewart serves as a co-chair of the Strategic Priority Committee on Resource Sharing of the Boston Library Consortium. This group is exploring the future of access to library reserves through interlibrary loans as the developing e-book environment continues to grow.     X Janet Stewart Academic Affairs
Veterans Upward Bound The Veterans Upward Bound Program at the University of Massachusetts Boston provides a unique opportunity for men and women veterans of all ages to gain access to information about college and career awareness, acquire the academic skills required for entry into higher education and/or to acquire the equivalent of a high school diploma. Services are offered continuously with various workshops, self-paced computer tutorials, individualized tutoring and classroom-based instruction. X   X Barry Brodsky Academic Support Services and Undergraduate Studies
Adult Literacy Resource Institute The Adult Literacy Resource Institute (part of UMass Boston since 1983, and 100% grant-funded) serves as the Greater Boston Regional Support Center for SABES, the state’s System for Adult Basic Education Support. We provide a variety of staff and program development services to adult basic education programs in the Boston area, especially the approximately 40 programs in the region (most located at community-based organizations) that are funded by the state’s Department of Elementary and Secondary Education and that offer ESOL, basic literacy and numeracy, GED preparation, and other classes (including family literacy, civics education, career pathways, and college transition). X   X Stephen Reuys College of Education and Human Development
Center for Social Policy - Evaluation Planning for the Massachusetts Adult Basic Education Professional Development System The Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (ESE) has commissioned the Center for Social Policy to conduct a literature review and develop an evaluation plan for its Adult and Community Learning Services' Adult Basic Education (ABE) program. The team has produced three deliverables: a Gaps Analysis Report summarizing and synthesizing the most effective practices for supporting high quality ABE instructors, a Comprehensive Brief on the potential future use of ESE data for the Department’s ABE policy development, and an Outline of an Evaluation Plan of ESE’s State Adult Basic Education System (SABES) Program.       X   Evelyn Frankford McCormack Graduate School of Policy and Global Studies
Center for Social Policy - Pathways to Family Success Evaluation Through the Center for Social Policy's Pathways to Family Success Evaluation, we are exploring the impact of community partnership efforts, in four locations throughout the state, to improve child, adult and family outcomes, through a coordinated 'wrap-around' model of education, workforce development and health/human services. This initiative is funded by the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education through its Adult and Community Learning Services (ACLS), Family Literacy division.   X   Berna Kahraman McCormack Graduate School of Policy and Global Studies

Business/Organizational/Financial Management

Program Summary Teaching/ Learning Research Service Contacts Dept. Affiliation
Massachusetts Small Business Development Center (MSBDC) Network's Boston Regional Office and Minority Business Center The Massachusetts Small Business Development Center (MSBDC) Network's Boston Regional Office and Minority Business Center provides free business advisory services and free workshops to Massachusetts businesses to help achieve these goals. Services include, but are not limited to: 1) business growth and success, 2) financing and loan assistance, and 3) strategic, marketing, and operational analysis. X   X Mark Allio College of Management
Strategic Planning with Quincy Asian Resources UMass Boston is assisting Quincy Asian Resources in its strategic planning process.     X Richard Hung College of Public and Community Service
Boston Harbor Islands Advisory Council Rick Kesseli has served on the Advisory Board for the 34-island system since 2009. The purpose of Boston Harbor Islands national park area is: to preserve and protect a drumlin island system within Boston Harbor, along with associated natural, cultural, and historic resources; to tell the islands' individual stories and to enhance public understanding and appreciation of the island system as a whole; and to provide public access, where appropriate, to the islands and surrounding waters for the education, enjoyment, and scientific research of this and future generations.     X Rick Kisseli College of Science and Mathematics
Predictive Policing: Boston Police Department Reliably predicting the location, time, and likelihood of future criminal activity in Boston: Working with the Boston Police Department, this work intends to explore a methodology for reliably predicting the location, time, and/or likelihood of future criminal activity. The work will allow BPD to deploy police resources in the areas where they can most effectively reduce the incidence.    X   Wei Ding College of Science and Mathematics
Edward J. Collins, Jr. Center for Public Management The Edward J. Collins, Jr. Center for Public Management in the McCormack Graduate School of Policy and Global Studies at the University of Massachusetts Boston is dedicated to improving the efficiency and effectiveness of all levels of government, with a particular focus on regionalization and performance management.   X X Stephen McGoldrick McCormack Graduate School of Policy and Global Studies
Edward J. Collins, Jr. Center for Public Management - Charter Reform The Collins Center is currently providing charter reform assistance to the city of Northampton and the towns of Hubbardston, Sterling and Southborough. The center has also provided charter reform assistance to the cities of Somerville, Everett, Holyoke and Newburyport.     X Stephen McGoldrick McCormack Graduate School of Policy and Global Studies
Edward J. Collins, Jr. Center for Public Management - Charter Reform Handbook and Database The Collins Center is writing a handbook for municipal charter commissions. It is also compiling a database of all forms of Massachusetts municipal charters.   X X Stephen McGoldrick McCormack Graduate School of Policy and Global Studies
Edward J. Collins, Jr. Center for Public Management - City 2 Business (C2B) The Collins Center was awarded a grant from the Boston Foundation to help cities preserve and expand their business bases by improving the way municipal governments interact with their small and mid‐sized businesses. The center will produce a “white paper” detailing the C2B approach, develop a prototype of the social media platform C2B envisions and begin outreach for participation in the program.   X X Stephen McGoldrick McCormack Graduate School of Policy and Global Studies
Edward J. Collins, Jr. Center for Public Management - Compendium of Municipal Reform Ideas The Collins Center published an index listing recommendations to improve the operations of municipalities in the Commonwealth suggested by numerous organizations and research bureaus.   X   Stephen McGoldrick McCormack Graduate School of Policy and Global Studies
Edward J. Collins, Jr. Center for Public Management - Conference for New Mayors The Collins Center held a first biennial leadership conference for the Commonwealth’s newly elected mayors in 2009. The second meeting was held December 3, 2011.     X Stephen McGoldrick McCormack Graduate School of Policy and Global Studies
Edward J. Collins, Jr. Center for Public Management - Consulting The Collins Center is analyzing and reviewing the city of Hartford, Connecticut’s data‐driven management system, known as “HartStat." The center also worked with Amesbury to further strengthen its highly‐regarded performance management system, “AmesStat,” and advised the City of Boston on the content and format of its “Boston about Results” quarterly performance reports.     X Stephen McGoldrick McCormack Graduate School of Policy and Global Studies
Edward J. Collins, Jr. Center for Public Management - Enhanced Regional 911 The Collins Center is assisting the State 911 Department develop regional Public Safety Answering Points and enroll additional communities in the Commonwealth’s several new Regional Emergency Communications Centers by providing advice to local governments, including the Essex and Plymouth County Sheriff’s Departments and the city of Springfield. It is also conducting an analysis of what approaches in this area were successful and what barriers exist to the establishment of such regional centers.     X Stephen McGoldrick McCormack Graduate School of Policy and Global Studies
Edward J. Collins, Jr. Center for Public Management - Federal Stimulus Municipal Grant Coordination The Collins Center helped 65 Massachusetts municipalities successfully apply for over $8 million in federal stimulus funds. The center also helped the city of Lowell win a $5 million grant from the federal Department of Energy.     X Stephen McGoldrick McCormack Graduate School of Policy and Global Studies
Edward J. Collins, Jr. Center for Public Management - Inspectional Services The Collins Center worked with the Merrimac Valley Planning Commission to establish a regional inspectional services program to streamline processes and pre‐qualify inspectors for building inspections, plumbing and gas fitting inspections, wiring and electrical inspections, and health inspections.  The program can be used to back-fill short-term vacancies in municipal inspections departments, to provide surge capacity during peak work periods, or to supplement inspections staffs for the longer term.     X Stephen McGoldrick McCormack Graduate School of Policy and Global Studies
Edward J. Collins, Jr. Center for Public Management - Interim Management The Collins Center has been retained by the towns of Hopkinton and Princeton to provide interim town management services and by the South Hadley Fire District #1 to provide interim management. It also provided special project assistance to the town of Grafton.     X Stephen McGoldrick McCormack Graduate School of Policy and Global Studies
Edward J. Collins, Jr. Center for Public Management - Management Assistance The Collins Center is assisting the Littleton Fire Department to develop a strategic plan; reviewing the management structure of the town of Hanson’s financial and land use departments; writing a report on the management organization of the town of Sherborn; conducting a study for the town of West Boylston to determine whether it is eligible for membership in an economic target area; facilitating collective bargaining negotiations with Chelsea’s unionized municipal employees and conducting an Information Technology (IT) assessment for the town of Norwell. It also explored city/town‐school consolidations for the town of Ipswich and the city of Westfield; reviewed the management, organizational structure and personnel policies of the town of Ashby; helped the city of Lawrence establish a consolidated finance department; moderated public forums on the development of the Town of Georgetown’s budget; conducted pay and classification studies for the towns of Hudson and Longmeadow; reviewed the school nursing program for the city of Chelsea; analyzed municipal job descriptions for the town of Seekonk; conducted a needs assessment for the Marshfield Council on Aging; and completed IT assessments for the towns of Ipswich and Middleborough.   X X Stephen McGoldrick McCormack Graduate School of Policy and Global Studies
Edward J. Collins, Jr. Center for Public Management - Martha’s Vineyard Study The Collins Center inventoried and compared how municipal services are delivered by the six towns and regional entities located on the island of Martha’s Vineyard.   X   Stephen McGoldrick McCormack Graduate School of Policy and Global Studies
Edward J. Collins, Jr. Center for Public Management - MassGOALS Project The Collins Center is coordinating the design and implementation of a new performance management system for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, which will be one of the most sophisticated and rigorous state systems in the country. The center previously worked with the Executive Office for Administration and Finance to lay out the multi‐phase, multi‐year roadmap for the creation of such a system. The project, known as MassGOALS (Government Outcomes to Achieve Long‐term Success), will enable Massachusetts state government to implement results-driven performance management, government transparency and performance‐based program budgeting. This work is attracting serious interest from a number of other states.     X Stephen McGoldrick McCormack Graduate School of Policy and Global Studies
Edward J. Collins, Jr. Center for Public Management - Metro Boston Homeland Security Center of Excellence The Collins Center is partnering with the Boston Fire Department and other area departments to establish the Metro Boston Homeland Security Region’s Center of Excellence. Assisting in the regional planning process to guide the development, implementation and enhancement of homeland security initiatives for the region’s public safety agencies     X Stephen McGoldrick McCormack Graduate School of Policy and Global Studies
Edward J. Collins, Jr. Center for Public Management - Municipal Health Care Cost Studies The Collins Center published two reports dealing with the rapidly escalating cost of providing health care coverage to municipal employees. The Utility of Trouble: Leveling the Playing Field: Giving Municipal Officials the Tools to Moderate Health Insurance Costs detailed the more than $40 million of annual savings the city of Boston could achieve in health insurance costs. The study, which also examined the health care plans of Cambridge, Melrose and Marshfield, followed a report published the previous year, “Controlling the Cost of Municipal Health Insurance: Lessons from Springfield”, which documented the city of Springfield’s cost reductions of $96 million over five years achieved by joining the state Group Insurance Commission.   X   Stephen McGoldrick McCormack Graduate School of Policy and Global Studies
Edward J. Collins, Jr. Center for Public Management - Municipal Recruitment The Collins Center is presently conducting searches for town managers for Framingham and Hanover, the Ipswich Fire chief and Wilbraham Police Chief. The center also conducted successful searches for town managers/administrators for Chatham, Winthrop, Princeton and Plymouth; the first chief administrative and financial officer in the history of the City of Springfield; the Worcester City Treasurer/Collector; the Executive Director of the Essex Regional Retirement Board, and the South Hadley District #1 Fire Chief. Working with UMass Boston’s Career Services as well as the College of Management to recruit students to the public sector.   X   Stephen McGoldrick McCormack Graduate School of Policy and Global Studies
Edward J. Collins, Jr. Center for Public Management - Municipal Turnaround Management The Collins Center provided budgetary and management advisory services to the city of Lawrence, saving the city $2.4 million. The center also was retained by the State of Rhode Island to support the receiver appointed by the Governor for the City of Central Falls.     X Stephen McGoldrick McCormack Graduate School of Policy and Global Studies
Edward J. Collins, Jr. Center for Public Management - New England StatNet The Edward J. Collins, Jr. Center for Public Management  is providing organizational coordination to New England StatNet, a network of municipalities using CitiStat or other performance management approaches. The center hosted an all‐day training program on measuring performance in June 2011 for managers that drew more than 120 representatives from New England municipalities, state agencies and nonprofit organizations. The program was sponsored in conjunction with the Rappaport Institute for Greater Boston at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government and the Pioneer Institute for Public Policy Research. X   X Amy E. Smith McCormack Graduate School of Policy and Global Studies
Edward J. Collins, Jr. Center for Public Management - Operations of the Town of Hanson, MA The Town of Hanson retained UMass Boston’s Edward J. Collins, Jr. Center for Public Management to perform an assessment of ways to increase efficiency and effectiveness within the town government.   X   Stephen McGoldrick McCormack Graduate School of Policy and Global Studies
Edward J. Collins, Jr. Center for Public Management - Regional Health Department The Collins Center assisted the Merrimack Valley Planning Commission (MVPC) in the establishment of a regional public health initiative for Amesbury and Salisbury.     X Stephen McGoldrick McCormack Graduate School of Policy and Global Studies
Edward J. Collins, Jr. Center for Public Management - Regionalization Advisory Commission The Collins Center staffed the Regionalization Advisory Commission, chaired by the lieutenant governor, which issued a number of findings about how regional and inter‐municipal collaboration could help Massachusetts cities and towns achieve economies of scale and deliver services more effectively and efficiently.     X Stephen McGoldrick McCormack Graduate School of Policy and Global Studies
Edward J. Collins, Jr. Center for Public Management - Report Relative to the Organization and Operations of the Town of Sherborn, MA While the immediate prompt for this study and report was the vacancy in the Town Administrator’s position, it quickly became clear that the vacancy in the position is not the only challenge facing the community. In the scope of our study, we were tasked with providing “an overview of the current organizational structure and operational practice of the town with a view to identifying changes that might improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the town.”   X   Stephen McGoldrick McCormack Graduate School of Policy and Global Studies
Edward J. Collins, Jr. Center for Public Management - Report to the Obama Administration The Collins Center authored the report, Performance Management Recommendations for the New Administration, released by the IBM Center for The Business of Government.   X   Stephen McGoldrick McCormack Graduate School of Policy and Global Studies
Edward J. Collins, Jr. Center for Public Management - Town Administrator Sharing The towns of Ashby and Ashburnham are now saving costs by sharing a town administrator, based on the center’s recommendation.   X   Stephen McGoldrick McCormack Graduate School of Policy and Global Studies
Edward J. Collins, Jr. Center for Public Management - Training The Collins Center is training Massachusetts state employees in the techniques and goals of performance management as the Commonwealth prepares to implement MassGOALS; planning a conference in early 2012 to present the MassGOALS program; offering an online course, Performance Management in Government and Non‐Profits four times a year; included a performance management component in the Center’s new professional development program for municipal employees; planned and presented panels on “Performance Management for Municipalities; Regionalism and Professional Development” to attendees of the fifty‐fourth Annual Meeting of the Massachusetts Municipal Personnel Association; recruited participants for and moderated a panel presentation on the use of performance management techniques in municipalities for the New England Government Finance Officers Association; delivered two presentations on performance management at the Massachusetts Association of School Business Officers’ annual meetings; and presented on the lessons of local performance management systems to an audience of federal government officials as part of a panel organized by the Mitre Corporation. X     Stephen McGoldrick McCormack Graduate School of Policy and Global Studies